


Estel - Hope

by J_Flattermann



Series: The March Warden of Lorién [4]
Category: The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-14
Updated: 2014-03-14
Packaged: 2018-01-15 17:57:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1313944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/J_Flattermann/pseuds/J_Flattermann





	Estel - Hope

  *   
Jun. 1st, 2012 at 1:36 PM



  
  
[](http://j-flattermann.livejournal.com/profile)[**j_flattermann**](http://j-flattermann.livejournal.com/)  


Ruby's Story Swap – Request #21

Title: Estel - Hope

Pairing: Strider/Haldir, Rumil, Orophin, Celeborn/Galadriel

Genre: Slash

Rating: NC-17

Word Count: 2,411

Disclaimer: Pure Fiction. All characters belong to the JRR Tolkien estate. No copyright infringement intended.

Summary: Haldir stumbles upon a wounded stranger who fled into Lórien.

  
  
[](http://pics.livejournal.com/j_flattermann/pic/002wh196/)Breathlessly Strider pushed himself to keep going. He gave himself no time to stop and listen if he was still followed. He could not remember how often he had cursed himself by now as he sped through the dense forest leaving the Dale behind.   


Why had he not just staid on the Old Forest Road after having handed over Gollum to the Woodelves in the hidden palace of King Thranduil? What had provoked him to go past Dol Guldur? He had known, for it was a well known fact, that the southern Mirkwood and especially the Tower of Dol Guldur was in enemies hands. 

He should have expected to be hunted down by the Dark Lord's Orcs. However he had not expected to find a winged Nazgul. Unfortunately that was the creature he had run into when closing in on Dol Guldur.

The attack had been immediate and despite his training and the swiftness of him changing his routes, the Nazgul on his fellbeast had managed to spy him every time. The hordes of Orcs hot on his heels had steadily grown and one of their arrows had hit his shoulder. The stinking black shaft poking his shoulder, deeply buried in soft tissue just under his shoulder blade was beginning to fester. He knew that Orc arrows usually were poisoned and he expected this one to be just the same. 

They had cut off his escape route over the passes of the Hithaeglir, as Orcs swarmed up behind him.  He had managed to cross the River Anduin by swimming through, even though the struggle against the current had cost him much. He had hoped to loose his hunters only to find that there were more Orcs waiting for him on the other side. 

As his way northward was blocked he had turned to the South with Orc still in close pursuit. He had managed to keep some distance and rushing through the Drimrill Dale he hoped to find shelter in the forest that showed further ahead of him. He had gathered all his remaining strength and made it into the dense wood, hoping that the canopy of the trees would shield him from the eyes of the Nazgul. 

Strider had thrown himself into the doubtful safety until the canopy of leaves in the treetops and the undergrowth swallowed his figure. There he had collapsed and lost his conscience.

* * *

Rumil blew his horn alarming and calling for his two brothers Orophin and Haldir to come to him. His eyes were fixed on the winged predator in the sky. 

It did not take long and the three brothers were united. Rumil did not need to point the Nazgul's presence out to his two siblings, nor was it necessary to make them aware of the Orc army that had gathered in the Drimrill Dale.

“They will not dare to enter Lórien. The power of Lord Celeborn and Lady Galadriel are by far too strong. They will not be able to breach our borders.” Haldir stated seeing the worried looks in his brothers' faces.

“I wonder what has lured them to come out of their hiding?” Orophin wondered. “Or who!” Rumil added.

“Well, we best go and find out!” Haldir proclaimed and asking Rumil to stay on the watch out, keeping an eye on the enemy's forces which still held their stand at Drimrill Dale.

Haldir and Orophin began their investigation by starting to systematical search the forest's outskirts until they found the place where the breaking of twigs and the flattening of the plants on the ground provided living proof that someone or something had entered into the realm of Lórien.

Orophin was the one who spied the blood smeared on the leaves first. 

“What or who ever entered our forest is wounded, look brother.” He dipped his fingertip into the smear. “It's blood!” He rubbed the bloodstain between his index finger and thumb and then smelled. “It's human blood.” 

The brothers followed the track which became more and more obvious to their eyes and also showed a continuous trail of blood. They did not took long to come across a person lying flat out on the ground. The man had been hit by an Orc arrow and the poison had begun its work, slowly had entered into his body. The two brothers exchanged glances. 

“He's one of those Rangers of the North.” Orophin stated the obvious as the man was clearly dressed as the named Rangers. “What is he doing so far South?” He wondered but Haldir did not respond but just shrugged.

“We need to bring him to our campsite. He needs medication. This arrow has to be removed and fast before more poison enters into his body. In the state he is already, it will be hard enough to try and save his life. Help me, let's bring him home.” 

Haldir carefully lifted the unconscious man up by his arms and Orophin was swift the hoist him up by the legs. Holding him between themselves the two started to speed up.

* * *

Orophin had been to Caras Galadhon and back with the message that the stranger should remain in Haldir's care as long as he needed for recovering from his injury. After that Haldir and his guest were ordered to report back to the Lord Celeborn before the stranger was made to leave Lórien again. Haldir was ordered to blindfold the stranger before he was allowed to enter into the inner sanctum, Lothlórien and the City of Trees.

Orophin had delivered the message and then joined his brother Rumil at the watch, leaving Haldir behind to care for the wounded man. 

To remove the poisoned arrow Haldir had to cut deep, glad that the man was still knocked out. Also the flesh around the arrow had shown an unhealthy grey colour and had to be removed as the Orc poison had destroyed the fibres of the muscles. Haldir had cut out quite an amount of rotten smelling, mushy tissue before applying a paste of herbs mixed in with the liquid from the vial Orophin had brought back from Caras Galadhon. 

Seeing the size of the wound Haldir sighed. He gave the man little chance of survival. He wasn't so sure his medical skills would be sufficient to save the man. Still for the amount of time the arrow had remained in the shoulder the poison had been working only very slowly which seemed to be utterly unusual. Something inside the stranger had slowed the process of poisoning down and this was absolutely abnormal for a mortal. 

This Ranger must be someone very special to have the power to fight the Orc poison.

The minute the thought had formed in Haldir's mind he thought that this was some news that he should relay to Lord Celeborn. He almost jumped when the door opened and in stepped the white Lady of Caras Galadhon. 

Haldir bowed low. “My Lady! What an honour to my humble abode.” But Lady Galadriel quieten him with a wave of her hand. “This is the stranger!” She said and stepped to the bed where the Ranger was lying face to the side on his belly not to put pressure on his wounded shoulder. 

Haldir only nodded knowing that the Lady would notice the slightest movement of the air and knew. “You had to remove much of his festering flesh.” She stated, again Haldir nodded but added “Not as much as I had feared, My Lady. Something in his blood slowed the poisoning. I have never seen such a thing in a mortal.” 

“He is special.” Lady Galadriel said. “When he's recovered then you bring him to me. There will be no need for blindfolding him. I shall speak to my Lord and tell him, there is no need for you to worry.” She said as she turned to leave, noticing Haldir's attempt to protest.

Haldir followed her outside into the clearing and there she gave him instructions how to treat the wound that it would heal with only little scarring. Then she left swift and noiseless as she had appeared. Haldir found that he had not even had time to thank her or bow.

He went back into his home to find the stranger wake, trying to lift himself up. “NO! NO! You lie down again. I had to remove a lot of damaged tissue where the poisoned Orc arrow had hit. It will take some time to heal and you have to be patient and rest and let the medicine do its work.”

Haldir had swiftly rounded the bed so that his patient could see who was speaking without being tempted to raise again and turn towards the speaker. 

“My brothers and I have found you when you sought shelter in the forest from the Orcs and the Nazgul that were hunting you. Here you are save. Neither of them will dare to come into Lórien forest." 

The man look into the pale blue eyes of the elf speaking to him and calmed down. 

“You have seen our kind before, I take it from you are not surprise seeing me.” 

“Oh, the only surprise is to find your kind so far South. Shouldn't you be roaming the forest of Mirkwood further North?” The man said in a voice weak and cracking with pain of breathing when speaking.

“Hush! I shall explain all to you later. Now you must sleep and not talk anymore as it takes far too much of your strength. And that is needed for you to heal.” 

The stranger tried to nod but it was to painful. “Thank you, my friend. Thank you.” 

His head sank back onto the bed and he fainted.

* * *

It took many weeks for Strider to regain his strength and Haldir remained at his side always. They had become friends at first and then more as the man grew in strength. 

With his brothers away Haldir had found companionship with the man and learnt that he indeed had met with Elves before. Strider disclosed as much as that he had come down through Mirkwood where he had met with Elves of Haldir's kind. He admitted to his mistake to come to close to the cursed Tower of Dol Guldur and how his luck had turned when the dark forces had found him out and hunted him, wounded him until he had reach the safety of Lórien.

“It was never my intention to come here in the first place.” Strider confessed one evening as they sat by the fire after a days practise with the sword to train the injured muscles of his sword-arm.

The two sat huddled together the darker skin of the man still moist from their lovemaking by the fire against the pale of the Elf's. “You know that I have to take you to Lothlórien before Lord Celeborn. You have regained your strength to the full, faster than I could ever imagined but then you are a special kind of mortal, Strider.” Haldir said, stroking his hands through the dark long hair soft as silk and glimmering red-golden from the reflecting fire. “I wished you had taken longer to heal.” Haldir sighed.

Strider turned around in the Elf's arms looking into the pale face under the long straight blond strands of hair and straight into the pale blue eyes which now were full of sorrow.

“I will carry you with me always.” He said, “Here!” And he took the Elf's hand and rested it on his chest where the beating of the heart vibrated the muscles and skin. 

Haldir smiled, “Yet I still have to loose you.” Sighing deeply he added, “Tomorrow we have to go to Caras Galadhon and from there I fear you will make your way on your own. Even though I hope ...” 

The Elf's voice broke and Strider took him in his strong tanned arms rocking him like a child. “Keep the memory of us in your heart, my friend. I shall do so myself and we shall never be far away from each other, no matter where fate is sending us. You will always be with me and I shall always be with you. This I am sure of.”

“You are speaking wise words like an Elf and yet you are of the mortal race. I will never understand how such a thing can be. Maybe this is the reason why I was drawn to you and why I find it so hard to let go.”

The next morning they made ready to travel to the City of Trees and even though Strider could not travel as fast as an Elf at full speed, he was swifter and quieter his footfall than any other mortal Haldir had ever met and this confused the Elf even more.

  
Only when they arrived and were led to meet with Lord Celeborn and Lady Galadriel the mystery about this Ranger of the North was revealed to Haldir. With eyes wide in astonishment he listened as the Lord of the Elves address the stranger he had known as Strider. 

“Estel, by the Valar, so it is you. Galadriel was saying she had recognised you but I couldn't believe before I saw you in person. Our son-in-law, your foster-father shall be please to hear that you are safe.” Galadriel had listened silently and smiled her calm but heart-warming smile.

“I have informed my son-in-law Elrond of your well-being, Estel. We will sent two of our trusted warriors with you to make sure that you are arrive safely in Imladris.”

She waved at two Elves waiting in the shadows with two fingers of her left hand and to Strider's great surprise he looked into the faces of Elrond's twin sons, Elladan and Elrohir.

Haldir had stood aside quietly and now that he knew how and why this mortal had been so special and also knew why he had been attracted to him, he slowly withdrew. 

His presence was not longer required nor wished for. This was family time.

One day so he hoped, he would be reunited with Aragorn son of Arathorn, Heir of Isildur and the Estel, Hope they had placed in him and named him after.

  
  



End file.
